


Two Weeks Ride to Whitestone

by Nanyoky



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Frontier, Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Western, American History, Background Relationships, Bandits & Outlaws, Ensemble Cast, Eventual Romance, F/M, Gen, Native American Character(s), POV Alternating, Period Typical Attitudes, Period-Typical Racism, Period-Typical Sexism, Sex Work, Western
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-05
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:42:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24869329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nanyoky/pseuds/Nanyoky
Summary: Percival Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III is riding out on a revenge mission when a little run in with the law sends him to a jail cell in a dusty frontier town called Emon. The twin outlaws he's been riding with lately help bust him out, but things don't go quite according to plan and their group unexpectedly swells in size.
Relationships: Grog Strongjaw & Pike Trickfoot, Keyleth/Vax'ildan (Critical Role), Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III/Vex'ahlia, Scanlan Shorthalt/Pike Trickfoot, Vax'ildan & Vex'ahlia (Critical Role)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 46





	Two Weeks Ride to Whitestone

**Author's Note:**

> Look. Listen. Sometimes you just have thoughts that get away from you.  
> As of right now, this is a one-shot story, but if I actually manage to write more, it will turn into a longer series, so please subscribe if you are interested in seeing more!

Pike had been at the saloon for well over two years, and it seemed every day was different and the same all at once. The regulars came and went, and travelers all blurred together into one dusty, sweaty mess. It was particularly crowded today, and she was already making note of which of her regulars and how many new faces she could see. Most days, she preferred someone new to a regular, if only to break up the monotony. There was more danger in a traveler, but she could take more than enough care of herself. She’d had to more than a few times.

In the midst of the clamber, she heard one of her fellow girls ask a question that anyone with good sense or manners likely wouldn’t ask a stranger. She didn't hear everything the freckled girl from down the hall said, but she knew it ended with "your tribe?" Pike winced on behalf of whoever she was talking to and made her way through the crowd, lifting two drinks high to keep them from being jostled.

"Only if you tell me yours."

There was a man and a woman at a small table in the center of the room. They were dressed similarly, in mostly blacks and greys, their sleek black hair braided down past their shoulder blades. The freckled girl stood over them, looking a little put out by the deliberately obtuse response to her bold question.

"The Olsen and Trickfoot folk of Appalachia," Pike filled the silence as she made it to the table and set one drink down in front of the woman, the other she pressed into the man's hand before hitching her skirt and setting herself on his knee. "Wicked folk we are. Mountain tribe."

The freckled one frowned slightly at being usurped a new customer but accepted she hadn't been making progress anyway.

“I’ll leave you two with Sister Chastity then.”

She left as the man and the woman took matching sips of the warm, flat beer. Pike let the nickname roll off her back. The nun jokes had gotten old around the bordello halls very quickly to her, but whenever someone found themselves annoyed with her, it was quick to make a comeback. It wouldn’t bother her much, except she’d never even been or claimed to be Catholic at all, let alone a nun. But she supposed she couldn’t expect folk out on the frontier to understand the subtleties of different faiths. Pike counted herself lucky that she and Grog had managed to settle into a town with a preacher at all, even if he read his sermons under a half dead sycamore instead of inside a church.

She focused instead on the two travelers she’d sat herself with. The man's arm had fallen comfortably around Pike's waist, but he didn't grab or press. The woman was giving her quite the eye already as she drank without a wince at the poor flavor. Pike found herself liking them both immensely.

"Thank you for the drinks, dear." The man said. "But your friend wasn't bothering too bad. My twin and I are made of tough stuff."

"Well I can see that." She laid a hand on his sinewy shoulder. "But I was getting lonesome over there and you looked about the most interesting folk here."

"Thank you, Miss. But I'm afraid there won't be business from me. I don't tend to pay for company."

Pike raised her eyebrows, amused at the declaration. It was arrogant, but he didn’t seem to be trying to show off either. There was a casual haughtiness to both of them. “No better than they ought to be,” most might say. But Pike already liked them enough to think they _did_ ought to be at least a little.

"Hard finding a lady not in the business, these parts."

He shrugged with a small smile before taking another drink. "Of course, if you're just here for conversation, you're welcome to share the table.”

"I may take you up on that." She hadn't quite given up on patronage yet. But the sister would be a longer, more careful game. She'd have to be patient if she wanted that to work out. "Pike Trickfoot."

"Vax."

The man replied first, a moment before his sister followed, like they had rehearsed it.

"And Vex Starr."

"Ain't you _just_."

They seemed content to pass lazy time with her, just as she was content to stay in their company. Money had been good lately, and she was tired of working. Vax's hand twisted absently at one of the curls hanging down her back as the three of them talked, but he didn't push contact. Vex was more than a bit of a flirt, and Pike was sure if she had been younger and more innocent, she would have blushed when the other woman winked at her with her tongue just touching her bottom lip.

"My dearest future wife! Betraying me whilst I am hard at work across town?"

Vax's hand tightened on her back and he turned to see who had shouted. Pike made sure her laugh was more good-humored and relaxed than it needed to be normally. She didn’t need some traveler, cool and relaxed as he may seem, getting possessive over a local joke.

"Mr. Shorthalt, you wouldn't know hard work if it hit you in the face."

Scanlan fought his way through the crowd before dropping into a free chair at their table, straightening his vest with a theatrical huff.

"Vex, Vax, this is Mr. Scanlan Shorthalt.” She gestured to each as a means of identification. “Mr. Shorthalt, the Starr siblings. They're just passing through town."

"A pleasure, of course." Scanlan shook both their hands, although they were giving him skeptical looks. Vax had relaxed, a little, but she could still see him shooting daggers at her friend out of the corner of her eye as the two men shook.

"Scanlan promises to marry me and take me away from all this at least twice per day." She informed them, unable to keep a small smile from her lips. “Goin on a whole year now we been ‘engaged,’ by my count.”

Vax did not seem to find this amusing in the slightest. He was still tense under her and looking at Scanlan with distaste.

"It's no kind of man who makes promises to a woman he don't intend to keep."

Vex was giving her brother a look that clearly said "not here." Scanlan seemed somewhat taken aback but pulled up his usual boundless grin and put a delicate hand to his chest.

"I assure you, Mr. Starr, I intend to follow through on it. Every word! The moment she gets over her bashful nature and agrees to let me sweep her off into the sunset, we will be wed. It's a small town, Emon, the preacher's never more than a quick jog away."

"Comes in handy more often for rights and burials more than lovers." Pike conceded. "It's a tough town, but you'll do alright. You said you weren't staying long?"

Vex smiled broader than she had yet, white teeth flashing against brown skin.

"We're just here to pick up a friend."

~

"South ten miles and west 60 more."

Keyleth repeated the numbers in her head, over and over as she drove. She was confident in her navigation skills, to a point. But the truth was she hadn't gone further than fifteen miles downriver to her family's nearest neighbor since before memory. For all she knew, there was no such thing as town. There was only the Wyatt family and their donkey, the occasional traveler hoping to find gold once he reached his destination, and even fewer Shoshone looking to escape the constantly creeping line of settlements.

But just as she was thinking she was hopelessly lost, she saw smoke on the horizon. Then a chimney. Buildings began to follow, first one and two, then well near fifteen. Keyleth was afraid to blink. She didn't know it was possible to build houses so close together. Taking a deep breath, she flicked the reigns, urging on Minxie and Pablo as they made their way together toward the town. She kept her head held high once she was close enough to be seen. She felt irrationally nervous, as if everyone could tell she'd never been in a real settlement before just by looking at her.

"'scuse me, sir?" she called out to the first man within earshot. "I'm new around here. Is this town?"

He gave her an incredulous look, eyes flicking from her head to her toes and all across the small wagon. "Which town you looking for, darlin’?"

Keyleth frowned. That's something she should probably know but hadn't thought to ask about before she left. Her father had made it all sound very simple, like any extraneous information would only serve to complicate a truly simple task.

"I don't rightly know. Papa didn't say there was more than one."

The man gave her a startled and somewhat pitying look. "Well this here is Emon, and I'm not being unfriendly when I say you oughta get your business here handled and run on home soon as you can, alright? It's no town for sweet little girls who might trust the wrong stranger."

He tipped his hat to her and hurried off before she could respond. Keyleth, frowning, shook off this interaction and continued toward what she hoped was the center of Emon. She met more on the hard-packed earth as she went, and she had to remind herself to sit straight. People were staring at her, but she felt she was doing an excellent job of not appearing too shocked at the amount of humans around her.

"Afternoon ma'am," she tipped her hat to a woman with piled ringlets and bright red lips. "Hello, sir. Lovely weather, isn't it?"

Aside from the first man, no one seemed to want to engage her. She’d half expected town folk to be more friendly than those out in the foothills, but maybe that was a fantasy. Maybe this was just a certain aspect of manners she didn’t quite understand yet. Her father said manners were very important to people once they got all clustered together, otherwise things would be chaos. Maybe this was just one of those things.

Undaunted, she made her way to a convenient well and hitching post at what seemed to be the center of the cluster of buildings before hopping down from the driver's seat. Keyleth pulled up a bucket with great heaves of her arms and poured half of the water inside on her dark and dusty hands before cupping them to drink. As she drank, she kept her eyes on the houses and businesses. She was supposed to ask about the Pyra family. But ask who? There were sweaty men everywhere she looked, and most of them looked on her with either disgust, or a leering she did not like one bit. The women were perhaps as bad, with looks of pity or suspicion on their painted-up doll faces. There must be a grocer or someone more kindly to travelers she could ask.

As Keyleth finished drinking and wiped her hands on the clean underside of her pinafore, there was an uproar across the square.

"Runaway horse!"

"Look out!"

She looked up in time to see the dun galloping toward her at full speed.

~

Grog didn't really need a day job. He fought in the evenings often enough to pay his half of he and Pike's bread. But as much as he hated to be told what to do, he didn't much like being idle either. He wasn't much for being on the side of the law, but the sheriff's office paid him better than anyone else was willing just to sit and snooze in a chair for half the day. If he brought a flask he could even drink and no one seemed keen to tell him not to. The prisoners never made any trouble. They were mostly just drunks and petty thieves- and more than half had seen him fight anyway. Most folk who had seen Grog fight didn't much like their chances of bothering him.

There were less prisoners than normal that day. A handful of usual ner do wells and one white haired fella who didn’t seem to move much at all. Grog half thought he might have died during the night but didn’t feel like checking. There’d likely be talking to do if he found a dead prisoner on his watch, and he hated the talking. So instead, he sat back and got a wink or two of sleep, dreaming of the sweet freckled one in the saloon who was a whole lot stronger than she looked.

“Alright, Mr. Strongjaw, you’re free to go for the day.”

He held out his open palm before even opening his eyes. The sheriff dropped a pouch of coin into it and, satisfied, Grog hefted himself to his feet and sauntered out of the combined sheriff’s station and jail house.

The sun was uncomfortably bright and hot, and he was just thinking he might like a drink. There was a wagon he didn’t recognize at the well, a few new dusty horses near the saloon. The grocer was whipping his old gelding a few storefronts down.

“Mr. Strongjaw!”

A rare smile cracked across his face as he recognized the slightly reedy voice calling out to him from the saloon porch. “Scanlan! Son ‘o’ bitch, what are we doin?”

“Up to you, partner.” Scanlan shoved his hands in his pockets and beamed up at him. “Just came from the saloon myself.”

“Little early in the morning for lady favors.”

“Just visiting my one and only paramour.”

Grog nodded slowly. He didn’t mind his friend’s interest in Pike. Scanlan was funny, and Pike liked funny. And she didn’t change the subject when he came up, which was what she did with any of her regulars that had ever gotten rough. She thought Grog hadn’t figured that out yet, but he’d learned that she wouldn’t try to talk him out of paying those men a visit if she didn’t know he’d caught on. Grog knew he wasn’t very smart, but he knew Pike.

“We could hit the pasture and I could pick a fight with that bull what the boys are drivin up to the valley come Tuesday.”

“That sounds dangerous, Grog.” Scanlan frowned. “What would Pikey say?”

“She would say ‘let me have a turn!’ which is why we gotta do it now while she’s workin.” Grog nodded sagely. “Save ‘er from herself.”

The much smaller man planted fists on his hips, a broad grin setting alight his dusty face. “You’re brilliant, Grog.”

~

“Jailhouse is just down the way.”

Vax nodded as they left the saloon, eyeing how many people seemed to be milling around the town square. There was a wagon by the well and a man in front of the grocery whipping a horse in utter futility. A few scattered people gossiped near what looked like a combined smith and clockmaker’s. Aside from that, a handful sat at porches, fanning themselves in the heat, but didn’t seem to be paying much attention to their surroundings.

“Can’t have too many law men in a town this size. Sure it’s just cuz it was close that he got brought here.”

“We should hurry.”

“Naw, let’s let’m stew a bit.” Vax yawned. “His own fault he got himself locked up. Maybe he’ll learn a lesson.”

Vex didn’t even have the time to say she doubted it. There was a bray and a shout. The horse the man across the square had been whipping kicked him to the ground and bolted. The twins watched, bemused, as the frothing animal charged toward the small crowd near the smith. A few people screamed or cursed, shouting warnings to those further down the square. Before their eyes, a small figure stepped out near the well and into the gelding’s path. A few more screams and Vax even heard his sister gasp next to him before grabbing his wrist.

“She’ll be trampled!”

But just before the point of no return, the frightened horse stopped short, all but skidding to a halt, mere feet before the waifish woman. The square held in dead silence for a few seconds that seemed to stretch into eternity before the horse let out a bray and a snort before starting off again, its shoulder clipping the young woman and knocking her to the ground. The moment of tension broken for the onlookers, many laughed at the undignified squawk the woman made as she fell in a heap.

“Poor thing…” Vex muttered even as she snorted into her hand. “Come on. He’s getting impatient, I’m sure.”

Vax ignored her and crossed the square to where the young woman was grumbling in the dirt and gravel. She was dressed oddly, and it was only when he got closer that Vax realized she was barefoot. She wore ragged buckskin leggings under what looked like a large man’s shirt that reached her knees and was cinched with a small child’s pinafore around her waist.

“You alright, Miss?” He took her bicep in one hand to help her to her feet as she continued to grumble.

“Boy ain’t got no kinda manners!” She snapped, jerking her clothes straight as she gained her feet once more.

“I-I’m sorry.” He let go of her arm. “I was only tryin to-“

“Huh?” She looked up at him at last, frowning. “Oh- not you- that good for nothing rude fella what knocked me down!”

She flapped a hand in the general direction the horse had run off before returning to slapping the dust from her legs and backside. Vax stood, feeling awkward and out of step.

“You sure you’re alright?”

“Hm?” She finally gave up on righting her clothes and blinked at him for a few solid seconds. “Oh yeah- sure thing, I’m fine. It’s just- I’m supposed to be getting supplies and all from my kin and I’ve already made a real fool of myself in front of folks.”

“Accidents happen.” What a stupid thing to say. But to be fair, she had done a very stupid thing in stepping in front of the charging horse, so hopefully she wouldn’t notice. “Anything I can do to help, Miss…?”

“Oh- hi—“ she seemed startled by the prompted introduction and thrust out a hand— “I’m Keyleth Ashari. Sorry- guess I’m a lil’ rattled.”

“That’s alright. Vax’ildan Starr.” He never used his full name. He was glad Vex had stayed on the porch of the saloon and hadn’t heard. Vax was behaving very oddly and his sister would surely notice. “Can I help you with anything? You sure you’re alright?”

“Oh- perfectly fine, Mr. Dawn Star, thank you.”

Vax blinked and opened his mouth to correct her misunderstanding, but she was already moving on. She blustered- not like someone bluffing at cards, but like a windy day. The best way he could describe her was _gusty_.

“Although- you from around here? I’m lookin for my kin. You know the Pyra family?”

Again, Vax found himself too slow to answer her rattled off questions. He was almost relieved to find a familiar presence at his side.

“Vax? Who’s your new friend?”

Of course Vex would grow impatient with him. She was at his side without a sound, arms crossed, a tight, bland smile on her lips. Vax held out an arm.

“Miss Keyleth, my sister, Vex.” The two women shook hands, Vex looking unimpressed, Keyleth over enthusiastic. “Vex, this is Miss Keyleth, the brave woman who stopped that horse from trampling anyone.”

“Brave indeed,” Vex said, and he could almost hear the ‘or just shit stupid’ she was mentally tacking on the statement. “Unfortunately, I’ve gotta steal my brother away, brave Miss Keyleth. We have an appointment to keep across town, and we’re already running late.”

“Oh- of course!” Keyleth seemed to all but jump at each shift in the conversation, as if she was literally kept on her toes by it all. “Thank you again. I really appreciate the help.”

She pulled something approximating an awkward sort of curtsey with the tails of her baggy shirt and pinafore before returning to her strong posture, fists on narrow hips and chin jutted out and up like she was the proudest soul in town. Vax couldn’t help but smile as he tipped his hat to her one last time before following Vex across the square.

“Pleasure, Miss. Glad you’re alright.”

“What the hell was that about?” Vex elbowed him hard in the side.

“What? Thought the poor kid might need a hand.”

Vex gave him a skeptical look before jerking her head toward the only building in the square they had yet to case.

“Shall we, Mr. Starr?”

“After you, Miss Starr.”

She punched him hard in the arm as they made their way across the hard-packed dirt of town toward the sheriff’s station.

~

Percy kept his eyes closed in his empty corner of the cell. After the guard changed for the late morning, the other prisoners in the next cell quieted, no longer asking him any idiotic questions. He could focus on what he needed.

His things were in an unlocked cabinet next to the deputy’s desk. Gun, bullets, holster, photos, belt, coat, pipe, tobacco. In that order. Then straight for the back door that opened onto a small clutch of chickens and tomato plants fighting to survive in the sandy ground. The twins had better be taking so long because they were perfecting a plan that would go off smoothly and without a hitch. He’d expected them earlier in the day, if not the night before.

“Alright, thank you, Mr. Strongjaw, but that’s all for the day.”

Percy opened his eyes just enough to see the sheriff arrive and retire the colossal man from watch duty. The sheriff paid the guard, who left without much conversation. This had its pros and cons. The huge man likely was not very fast, and Percy would hazard a guess less than clever, but if he was trapped in close quarters before reaching his guns, he would be finished.

“How was your first night in the cage, stranger?”

Percy ignored the sheriff’s needling prompt and kept his eyes closed once more. Guns, bullets, holster, photos, belt, coat, pipe, tobacco. Guns, bullets, holster, photos, belt, coat, pipe, tobacco. Guns, bullets, holster, photos-

A soft click of metal against metal to his far left. A murmur from his fellow prisoners and the scuff of a few boots. Percy smiled, taking deep breaths and counting silently. The front door to the jailhouse opened before he got to five.

“Hello, Ma’am, what can I do for you?”

“Oh, I _do_ wonder that. Sheriff, is it?”

“Yes’m. Goin on twenty years now.”

“My, my.”

The click of boots and jingle of spurs over the wood floor. Percy started to roll his wrists and crack his neck.

“So… what is it brings you here today?”

“That’s the thing…” The steps slowed to a stop and the desk creaked. He could see it all happening. The sheriff’s interested gaze over Vex, long and lean as she planted her hands on the surface between them and smiled shyly. “You see, I’ve got all this work to do and no way to get it all done myself. I’m lookin for a strappin man to… give me what I _need_.”

Percy had to press a hand to his mouth to keep a laugh in check. It really wasn’t funny, but she was far too good at this sort of thing. He could all but _hear_ her lashes batting. The chair the sheriff must have been sitting in scraped across the floor. Heavier footfalls.

“Now Miss, if I didn’t know any better-“

Percy took a small nearby pebble and threw it against the opposite wall without opening his eyes. It hit almost at the same time as the hammer of a pistol was pulled back and the barrel, he imagined, pressed to the sheriff’s back.

“What was-“

At last, Percy opened his eyes and got to his feet, unable to stop a small smile at the picture Vex made. In the moment the sheriff was distracted, she and drawn her pistol and had it tucked firmly under his chin, grinning brightly at him as if they were just having a lovely conversation over drinks. Vax had the man boxed in from behind, gun pressed a little firmer to his spine.

“Now, Sheriff, what I need from you is to just stay all calm and quiet while that sweet brother o’ mine ties your hands, alright?”

Percy watched as Vax pressed his gun harder into the small of the sheriff’s back. Shouts and hollers from outside and the empty cell next to Percy’s indicated just what the slightly taller twin had been up to this whole time.

“Alright in there, Freddy?”

“Better by the moment.”

“Oh Freddy,” Vax shot him a look that said he knew how much the name irked him, “you’ll make a man blush.”

Percy watched as Vax made quick work of tying up the sheriff and gagging him, after which Vex lowered her pistol and plucked the keys from his belt.

“There now, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” She slapped the man’s cheek as he glared at her like he would spit, if not for the thick rag stuffed in his mouth. “How are you doin, Percy?”

“You’re late.”

“So sorry, Darlin’.” Vex winked at him. “But there’s just so much to do. Arm up.”

She finally released him from the cell and Percy crossed the space he’d been mapping for the past day and a half in just a few long strides. Guns, bullets, holster, photos, belt, coat, pipe, tobacco.

~

Vex squinted in the bright sun as they stepped out into the square once more. There was chaos on every edge of her periphery. The former occupants of the small jail were scattering across the town, startling the other citizens in their rush to get as far away as possible before anyone realized what was happening. At the crack of a pistol, Vex turned a withering glare on her brother. Vax at least had the decency to wince.

“Well, everyone’s distracted?”

“Remind me to beat your ass on the way to the next town.”

“I’ll definitely do that.”

They made their way further down the square, toward where they had left the horses on the opposite side of the saloon. No one seemed too bothered with them yet, but that could change at any moment.

Vex watched Percy out of the corner of her eye. He looked more well fed than when they first met, but no less grey in his complexion, the dark circles all the more plain under his ice blue eyes. There was determination in his gait and the set of his shoulders. This was hardly new but Vex couldn’t help but think he was getting worse. More tightly wound. Like a spring ready to shoot out from under enormous pressure. She wanted to touch his shoulder in the hopes of seeping up some of the tension, but though any contact might set off unintended release. Now was not the time to attempt a controlled unspooling of whatever he was fighting to contain.

So instead, the situation at hand. Which she probably should have been focusing on anyway.

“This might actually go off smooth after all.”

Which was a very stupid thing to say. Everyone with any sense knew you didn’t spew bullshit optimism like that, especially while pulling off a jail break. The moment the words had left her mouth, there was a clatter and a shout from the jailhouse.

“What- those three! After them!”

“Aw shit-“ Vax drew his pistol and put on his hat. “What was plan B?”

In only a moment, Percy had both of his guns drawn and let off a round into the jailhouse sign above the blustering sheriff’s head. The man ducked, letting out a bellow of fear and anger.

“Shoot and run!” Vax shoved her in the back toward the other side of the saloon. “Go! Get those stubby legs workin!”

Vex bolted, trusting them both to cover her back while she cleared the way- firing a shot into the air to scatter the frightened and confused crowd.

“Freeze you lousy mongrels!”

She felt her stomach turn cold as she heard Vax curse under his breath. Vex stopped at the steps of the saloon porch and turned, slowly. The three men facing them from perhaps twenty paces into the center of the square had to be lawmen. There was no other reason for them to get involved- to be so stupid. She eyed the boys out of the corner of her eye, trying to assess which was most likely to do something stupid first. She shouldn’t have wondered, as it was barely a moment before Vax shot an arm out to grab the nearest body to himself.

“Hey now- what-“

“Now, I’m real sorry, Miss Trickfoot-“

“Vax, what-“

Vex sighed and reached for a dark figure darting at the edge of her periphery, joining her brother in holding a civilian against her, gun to their chin. Bluffing like this was not their style. It was a dangerous game, inviting unknown variables into a confrontation. But sometimes, doing something stupid was the only way to get out of a situation. Which was probably the only reason any of them were still alive.

“Vex! What are you two doing?” Percy hadn’t dropped his guns, but he hissed at the two of them out of the corner of his mouth. “How is this-“

“Don’t trouble yourself too hard, darlin’.” Vex adjusted her grip on the short man she had grabbed. “We’re just getting a little security on our way out.”

“Listen, Miss, I don’t know what y’all are up to, but tell your man there to unhand Miss Trickfoot! She’s no part of any of this!”

“I’d listen to him if I were you, Mr. Starr.” Pike had her palms raised from under where Vax had an arm barring her chest and keeping her shoulders flat against him. “I’ll warn you, I got pointy little elbows at a real convenient height on your figure.”

Vax blinked, but kept the barrel of his gun to her head. “I’m real sorry about all this, Miss Trickfoot, but I’m just gunna have to bring you along with us a bit. So, if you’d keep calm and make this go smooth as possible, I’d be much obliged.”

“You alright, Scanlan?”

“Don’t worry about me!” The man Vex was gripping responded and with a wince, she realized she recognized him as well as the blond saloon girl. “Unhand her!”

“Oh great, they know each other.” Percy’s sharp eyes flicked over the square, counting lawmen and civilians alike.

It seemed that, although complicating matters in the long run, Vax’s instinct to take a hostage had worked out. The lawmen seemed loath to even aim their guns at them with the blond woman and swarthy man in the same line of sight. Percy maneuvered himself behind them, though he was still cursing them both under his breath.

“Let go of them folk!”

“Sure thing- once we’re a nice good distance outta town!” Vex found herself promising. “This don’t have to end bad for anybody if we all keep our heads.”

“There’ll be no keepin of any heads except the three of yours in the hangin tree’s grave!”

“Clumsy rhetoric…” Percy sighed, his eyes still shooting around the square. “Well, we tried. What’s next in your brilliant plan, Vax?”

“You’re the ideas man, everyone knows that.”

Vex grinned despite the situation as she felt Percy’s indignant gaze fall on her. “Don’t look at me, darlin’. I’m just the charm.”

“Bullshit, sis. Everybody knows _I’m_ the charm.”

“You alright, Pike?” The man Vex had grabbed seemed both frozen with fear, yet unable to keep silent. Which was probably for the best in gaining the sympathy of the onlookers. “I swear if they hurt you-“

“Nobody’s hurtin anybody,” Vax insisted. His hands didn’t shake on the gun, or the small woman, but his voice wasn’t as strong as it should be now that he was drawn back into the gravity of the situation. Vex chewed this inside of her cheek. They needed to make a decision, and fast.

“Percy…” She pushed the words out between her teeth. “We need to move. Horses are twenty paces to your eight.”

In what felt like a second, he pivoted and took his shot. The bullet struck a bell near the center of the square before ricocheting across the air in front of the lawmen. Vex and Vax, without looking at one another, aimed and shot at the men’s feet. In the ensuing chaos, the three of them made a break off the saloon’s porch, Percy leading the way. Vex’s heart rose as they neared the edge of the building. If they could just get around the corner and on their horses, they would be in the wind. They were so close. The adrenaline pushed her faster than normal, even with the man she was shoving along with her as she ran.

Percy disappeared around the corner of the building… and there was a thud and two voices crying out. Vex felt her heart sink as she rounded the corner to find Percy on the ground, entangled with the slight girl Vax had been talking to earlier. Cursing, with no time to think of anything less stupid than what hey were already doing, Vex kept running.

“Grab her and get going, Percy!”

At least now they each had their own shield.

~

Scanlan didn’t know whether to be insulted or impressed by how easy it was for someone to pick him up and half carry, half drag him around the corner of a saloon and toss him painfully over the pommel of a waiting horse’s saddle. He wheezed, the air knocked from his lungs as the hard leather knob collided with his stomach.

“Use your legs!” The woman who had grabbed him snapped. “Fallin off ain’t gunna help your situation, darlin!”

She kicked the horse to start off and Scanlan nearly slipped off. He gripped the pommel and kicked out, trying to get a leg on either side of the already moving beast. A shot going off somewhere over his head almost startled him into falling, but he managed to jostle into something like a stable position in the saddle in front of his captor.

“I’ll have you know-“ he shouted over the pounding of hooves and gunfire. “I’ll be a terrible captive, Miss! I ain’t got any sense of self preservation, and I ain’t ever knew when to keep my mouth shut!”

“I don’t remember askin!” She snapped back. “It’s fine by me if you fall off right here and now! We’ll be turnin y’all loose once we’ve lost these turkeys anyway. It’s in your best interest to stay still and quiet until then, but if you _want_ to get trampled, that’s no skin off my ass!”

Scanlan scowled, calculating the likelihood of surviving if he bailed on the ride at this speed. He might avoid a trampling like she threatened, as her two compatriots with the red-haired girl and Pike had fanned out to present smaller targets.

Pike. He couldn’t leave her in the hands of those bastards. Scanlan would proudly declare himself a coward up and down, but there were very few people on this earth he cared about and he’d be damned if he abandoned one of them on the hope that a trio of outlaws would keep their word. He gripped the pommel of the saddle before him and leaned to the side, looking back. The town of Emon was getting smaller by the second. It didn’t seem like any of the lawmen were following, but they weren’t far enough out yet to stop. Not by a long shot.

Shit. Scanlan had meant to leave Emon soon, but this was hardly what he had planned. He’d almost turned back to face forward when he saw it. The small grey dot too close to the ground to be a horse and rider. With a sigh, he turned around, wondering how long Grog could sprint without stopping, and how that compared to a trio of horses with two riders each.

**Author's Note:**

> I gave the twins the surname Starr because a podcast I was listening to released an episode on Belle Starr around the time I had this idea and I couldn't let it go as a GR9 outlaw name.


End file.
